印度富二代的奢华婚礼

A highlight of the traditional wedding pageantry is the groom's entrance on a white horse or on an elephant. Gurleen Puri, a Mumbai wedding planner who assisted with the Macau nuptials, says that because there was no elephant in Macau, the wedding party wanted to bring one in. But Macau authorities turned down the request for an import permit.
印度传统婚礼的高潮是新郎骑着一匹白马或一头大象入场。参与安排了穆萨家族澳门婚礼的孟买婚礼策划人古尔力恩．普里（Gurleen Puri）说，因为在澳门没有大象，筹备组决定运头大象进澳门。不过澳门当局驳回了他们的进口许可证申请。

Ultimately, the Muthas settled for a local horse -- and a brown one at that. The cost was more than $5,000 for the groom to make his 20-minute debut in the saddle. Other transportation included a white 1950s MG that was leased in Hong Kong and brought to Macau by ferry to be used in the wedding procession for about 25 minutes. The tab? Nearly $10,000.
An essential ritual for Hindus and Jains is called the pheras, where the bride and groom circle an open fire seven times, symbolizing the vows a couple makes. The parents had to sign contracts indemnifying the hotel against fire damage.
最后，穆萨家族在当地搞到了一匹马──一匹棕色的马。新郎骑马入场那20分钟的开销是整整5000美元。此外，还从香港租了一辆50年代的白色名爵车，海运到澳门，在婚礼队列中开了大概25分钟，花费是1万美元。印度教徒和耆那教徒的婚礼上有一项不可或缺的重要仪式：新娘新郎绕火堆走七圈，象征着夫妇间的盟誓。为此，新郎新娘的父母跟酒店签订了条款，赔偿火堆造成的损害。

Following the Macau wedding, Mr. Mutha flew to several destinations to check out possible venues for his daughter's wedding. Besides the Thai resorts of Koh Samui and Hua Hin, he visited Istanbul, Bali, Kuala Lumpur and Langkawi. Mr. Mutha and his wife settled on Bangkok for its museums and temples and good shopping close to the InterContinental.
澳门婚礼之后，穆萨又飞了好几个地方，给女儿物色合适的婚礼场地。除了泰国的度假胜地苏梅岛和华欣之外，他还去了伊斯坦布尔、巴厘岛、吉隆坡和兰卡威。最后，穆萨和妻子选定了曼谷，因为这里有很多博物馆和寺庙，洲际大酒店附近购物也非常便利。

Planning the event took less time -- four months -- than for the one in Macau because Mr. Mutha knew the ropes. He won't say how much he spent on his daughter's wedding,but he says it cost more than the Macau wedding, mostly because of the celebrity entertainers flown from India, including the famed team Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani, who sing and direct music for Bollywood films. Mr. Mutha paid for the hotel rooms in Bangkok for 550 guests and 290 support staff.
办过澳门的婚礼之后，穆萨对于海外婚礼已经是驾轻就熟，所以这次的筹备时间比上次要短──只用了4个月。他没有透露女儿婚礼的具体开销，不过他说比澳门那次要贵，主要是因为他们从国内请来了很多的明星艺人，包括为宝莱坞影片制作音乐的著名的维沙尔．达德拉尼（Vishal Dadlani）和谢克哈．拉夫贾尼（Shekhar Ravjiani）组合。穆萨支付了550位来宾和290名工作人员在曼谷住酒店的开销。

The families transported all sorts of paraphernalia needed for the ceremonies, including four long swords that are used in a ritual by male relatives who swear to protect the bride, and kumkum, powder for marking foreheads.
婚礼所需一切用品全部从印度运过去，包括四把长剑（在某场仪式中男性亲属会用这些长剑来宣誓保卫新娘）和kumkum（用来点额头的粉末）。

A traditional white horse was found in Bangkok to perform the groom's entrance, and the open-fire ritual was observed.
新郎入场时要骑的那种传统的白马在曼谷当地找到了，火堆仪式也举行了。

Wowed by the horses, marching bands and Bollywood entertainers on display at the Macau and Bangkok weddings, Mr. Karia's 23-year-old son, Mit, who recently got engaged, says: 'I want something like that.'
卡利亚23岁的儿子米特（Mit）最近刚订婚，澳门和曼谷婚礼上那些马匹、乐队和宝莱坞艺人令他赞叹不已，他表示，“我也想要一个这样的婚礼。”

'When you get married in your own city, the wedding becomes a fish market,' he says, pointing to the weddings in Mumbai and New Delhi that bulge with 1,000 or more guests because of social obligations. And with weddings sometimes back-to-back, one celebrations can blend into another.
他说，“在老家举办的婚礼就像一个鱼市。”他指的是那些在孟买和新德里举行的婚礼，因为人情应酬得请上1000位甚至更多的客人。而且因为婚礼场次太过频繁，不同的婚礼之间常常在时间上产生冲突。

Young Mr. Karia is considering getting married in Singapore next year. His father knows it will be time to up the ante, given a guest list with many of the same faces. And the Karias are determined to outdo themselves. 'Obviously,' says the senior Mr. Karia, the invitees will 'expect more than the last one. That's basic human nature.'
米特打算明年在新加坡举行婚礼。他父亲知道这次要下更大的血本了，因为宾客名单上有很多熟悉的面孔。卡利亚家族打算要更上一层楼。卡利亚说，来宾“当然都会有更高的期望。这是人之常情。”